Poems of Aduri Satyavathi Devi
Poem-7
Reflections Do Not Talk
Telugu Original: Aduri Satyavathi Devi
English Translation: Munipalle Raju
These are the fragrant smells of perfume
Rained by a human shrub drop by drop.
These are the thrills in an echoing breast
Roused by whiffs of a scented feast.
These are the tears of our human race
These are the voiceless laments for child victims
The silent wails of all mothers and parents.
These creative energies for words
Did not emerge as sounds in ease
They were the vigils of listless nights
They were the results of so many burns in the heart.
A Torment
An anguish
And a Search!
An offering of a total Life!
For a Dove of Peace to release
When Rivers were flooded with blood
For a fistful of sentiments
When the distress fills the entire Space!
After digging the brains haphazard
After mocking the humane in concord
The strokes are not so loud – Tick! Tick
But you feel the silent blows of a hammer hurting
How many wasted Dreams!
Like the lively waves of a Blue Expanse
Bashing their heads against rocky feet
Those immobile and motionless monsters.
The fetters that refuse to break like pregnant clouds
The little Christ’s on the crosses in so many mines
Lives burdened in the workshop clamours.
They stare from the Televisions of my Eyes
They stand questioning and questioning More
Looking and flowing the cosmonaut in the Sky
At his rocket knifing through unmapped space
*****
Telugu Original : ‘Mooga Bhavalu’
Aduri Satyavathi Devi was born in Guntur in the year 1948 and settled in Visakhapatnam after marriage in 1969. She began her literary career as a lyricist at the age of 13. She wrote a variety of lyrics numbering about 300 — light, classical, devotional, patriotic, children’s and others. More than 50 songs of Satyavati Devi were broadcast over All India Radio. Eventually she made forays into various other literary genres like Poetry, Short story, Essay, Radio Play, Musical Feature, Books, Film reviews, Forewords etc..She created a substantial corpus of poetry with more than 180 poems included in 4 anthologies of poetry. She received accolades from readers, scholars, critics and litterateurs for her sensitive rendering of poems. She participated in many Poetry Meets, Festivals conducted by All India Radio, Doordarshan and the Sahitya Akademi. She was widely translated into English and Hindi. Some of the translations appeared in renowned journals like Indian Literature (English), and Samakaaleen Bharateeya Saahitya (Hindi).
She published her first volume of lyrics Vennello Venugaanam in 1988. Her first volume of poetry Rekkamudavani Raagam was published in 1992 followed by Jalapaata Geetam in 1997 and Veyirangula Velugu Raagam in 2006. Hindi translation of Rekkamudavani Raagam came out in 2008 as “Pankh an Modnevaalaa Raag” and a miscellany of various facets of her literary endeavour Vennela Paarijaataalu was published posthumously in Dec 2008. She received many prizes and awards for her literary pursuits and accomplishments like STVD Kalasamithi Award for Rekkamudavani Raagam in 1993, and Telugu University’s “Pratibha Puraskaram” as “Best Poet” in 1994, “Krishna Sastry Award” from Andhra Lalita Kala Samithi (Secunderabad) in 1998, UNESCO Literary Award in 2000, and “Ramavruksha Benipuri Janma Sataabdi Sammaan” from Jaimuni Academy (Panipat) in 2002. An English translation of her poem, “Veyirekkala Pavuram” (Myriad Winged Bird) has been included in the syllabus of English texts in the poetry section of Degree year students by the Common Core syllabus Committee in AP from 2008.